ZB Game of the Week: Ravens at Lions

For this being the 15th week of the season there are very few games on the schedule where both teams have playoff aspirations.

That’s not the case Monday night in Detroit, however. The Lions will host the Baltimore Ravens with the home team trying to hold off two NFC North foes for the division title and the visitor attempting to earn a chance to defend the Lombardi Trophy it won in February.

The Ravens and the Lions might not be the sexiest match-up of the season’s last month, but it’s a huge game with postseason implications galore. Tony Lombardi, founder of Russell Street Report,  and Zac Snyder, editor of SideLion Report, stopped by to share their thoughts on what will go down on Monday Night Football.

Tony Lombardi, Russell Street Report: (@RussellStReport, @RSRLombardi)

WHY THE RAVENS WILL WIN:

The Ravens have struggled on the road this season (1-5) but four of those setbacks were lost by a TOTAL of 15 points. On the road the Ravens seem to lose focus and that has been a pattern of the team after wins at home during the regular season. But with their backs to the wall, every game is a playoff game for the Ravens and they are a battle-tested team on the road during the playoffs where they’ve won more frequently than any team since the dawn of the new millennium.

Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco now has his go-to target TE Dennis Pitta available to him and Pitta’s presence alone loosens things up for Flacco’s other big-play potential targets Torrey Smith, Jacoby Jones and developing rookie Marlon Brown who has 6 TD catches as well as a previously sluggish running game that showed some life last week against the Vikings. Defensively the Ravens are as healthy as a team can be in Week 15 and they also have big play potential in the return game with Jones unless of course Mike Tomlin pays a visit to Ford Field on Monday Night.

HOW THE RAVENS COULD LOSE:

The Ravens offensive line has struggled this season, particularly the interior line where center Gino Gradkowski has struggled and backup RG AQ Shipley has at times been overwhelmed given his physical limitations. Regular Pro Bowler LG Marshal Yanda has not had the rock solid season that has been a staple of the Ravens offense. Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley should be salivating.

Defensively the Ravens have almost always been able to keep an opponent’s No. 1 receiver in check with effective bracket coverage. But in doing so it puts pressure on their linebackers to cover tight ends and running backs in the passing game and unfortunately the Lions have two threats in the forms of Brandon Pettigrew and Reggie Bush who could keep the chains moving and drives alive.

PREDICTION:

Both teams need a win and this will be a closely fought game that should be a high scoring, seesaw affair. But in the end the home field advantage (aided in part by referee Carl Cheffers’ affinity for the host teams that win 73.6 percent of the time on Cheffers’ watch compared to a league average of 54.9 percent), the more explosive offensive weapons and a Ravens defense that has not been clutch in close games will pave the way to a Motor City win. Lions 31 Ravens 27/

Zac Snyder, SideLion Report (Twitter: @SideLionReport)

WHY THE LIONS WILL WIN:

The Lions are fighting to hold on to their lead in the NFC North and choking it away could cost Jim Schwartz his job. The Lions will show up because, simply put, they have to. They were in a similar position on Thanksgiving Day following losses to the Steelers and Bucs and responded with a totally dominating performance against the Packers. I don’t expect them to blow out the Ravens the same way, but the Lions have the talent to get the job done and it is now “put up or shut up” time.

HOW THE LIONS COULD LOSE:

The Ravens’ season would likely be a lost cause at this point if it wasn’t for their opportunistic nature. That could be a problem for the Lions who have been the most turnover-prone team over the past month. If Matthew Stafford and the Lions ball carriers can’t protect the football, they may be in trouble in a game they should win. Unfortunately, it is a scenario Lions fans have seen too often this season.

PREDICTION:

Lions fans may be a bit down with the Lions having lost three of their last four, but that shouldn’t dampen the crowd for Monday Night Football. Everyone knows what is at stake and I expect the Lions will be able to at least limit the mistakes enough to send them to a win. Lions 23, Ravens 20.

Zoneblitz’ Take: I’ve seen a lot of sites playing up the Detroit desperation angle this week. A couple have even predicted blowouts. I’m not so sure. The Lions have a couple things working against them. First, they’re mostly not playing very well right now. They’ve lost three of four and have given up 34, 24 and 37 points in the last non-three Thanksgiving games. Furthermore, the more they struggle, the more they have to be hearing the internal voices of struggles past. Meanwhile, the Ravens have little to lose. They lost several veteran free agents the season after winning the Super Bowl and much less was expected from them this season. Joe Flacco and Co. can pretty much sling it Monday. I’m picking Baltimore in a narrow upset, 27-24.

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